Missing 80-year-old man found dead in his van

An 80-year-old Reporoa man reported missing by his family has been found dead in his car.

It was not yet known how Orson Skudder died but police are treating the incident as a fatal road crash.

The Rotorua-based Tenon rescue helicopter spotted Mr Skudder's white Mitsubishi Delica van about 20m off a road and 10m down a bank -- invisible from the road -- about 20km south of Rotorua.

Senior Sergeant Anna Jackson said a post mortem examination would be carried out to establish how Mr Skudder had died.

- NZPA